Think You Have an Ear for Hits? Sign Up for Hooked

While there are certain formulas one can follow in an effort to write a hit song, you are never, ever 100% sure that the public will bite.  That’s why the recorded music industry has increasing turned to computer analysis of songs to determine all the elements that go into a hit song thereby (theoretically, anyway) decreasing the risk of releasing a stiff.  (See Hit Song Science for an example.)

The newest attempt at pre-cogging hits is Hooked, an app developed at the University of Amsterdam and Utrecht University.  By exposing volunteers to a random selection of the 2,000 most popular songs of all time, the boffins are hoping to uncover what it is about these songs that make them so appealing.

Read more about Hooked at Science News.  If you want the app, it’s available to anyone for free in the Apple App Store.